European Space Agency has recently invested over $380 million in an alien-hunting space mission to Jupiter

In the crucial search for life beyond Earth, some of Jupiter's
major moons hold great potential, and Europe has decided to explore that
potential in the upcoming years. The important thing right now is that their
mission just hit a key milestone. On July 17, the European Space Agency stated that they were issuing a contract to award the U.S.-equivalent of $384 million
to the European-based firm Airbus Defense and Space. Jupiter has turned out to
be one of the most likely neighborhoods in our entire solar system with the exact
elements for extraterrestrial life. That's because researchers have lately come
to suspect that three of Jupiter's moons —Europa, Callisto, and Ganymede—could
host huge oceans beneath their icy, outer surfaces. But to know if there are real
microbial, or even shrimp-sized, aliens bathing on these moons will involve a
mission unlike any yet attempted.

Artist's Illustration of the European Space Agency's JUICE mission to Jupiter and its moons.

Under this newest contract, which ESA and Airbus are set to
sign at the end of the summer, Airbus will be accountable for the development, launch
campaign, testing, and in-space commissioning of ESA's "JUpiter ICy moons
Explorer," or JUICE, mission. The JUICE mission is planned to launch in
2022 and reach Jupiter's system by 2030. After reaching the Jupiter’s system,
the spacecraft will start flying over all three of the giant planet's water
moons. The spacecraft will give a particularly close look at Ganymede — the biggest
moon of Jupiter and, actually, the biggest moon in the entire solar system.

In March, a group of scientists using the powerful Hubble
Space Telescope found solid indication to propose that Ganymede not only has
water under its surface, but it could host a single, global ocean that is 60
miles thick and holds more water than all of Earth's oceans combined.

To find signs of life on Ganymede, as well as Europa and Callisto,
ESA plans to send the JUICE spacecraft with a total of "10
state-of-the-art tools," counting:

Cameras that can take pictures of the surface in quest for any
geysers that could be discharging organic-rich water off the planet into space.

Spectrometers, which can help researchers conclude the type of
material, such as nitrogen or carbon that covers the surface.

Ice-penetrating radar, to measure how deep the oceans on these
moons actually are.

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European Space Agency has recently invested over $380 million in an alien-hunting space mission to Jupiter
Reviewed by Umer Abrar
on
7/27/2015
Rating: 5